A television feature about research into “flexible” computers, conducted at Queen's Human Media Lab, has been voted the most popular segment this season by viewers of the Daily Planet program on the Discovery Channel. The network conducted an on-line survey in May to choose which of its most highly-rated stories should be brought back and/or updated. Flexible Computers topped the rankings.
Noting that Queen’s Human Media Laboratory (HML) is one of the world’s foremost facilities of interactive computing technologies, Computing professor and HML director Roel Vertegaal, says: “We are very excited to see our invention of an entirely new form factor for computer user interfaces acknowledged in this way.”
Computers of the future will take on flexible forms never imagined – like pop cans with browsers, displaying RSS feeds and movie trailers, Dr. Vertegaal predicts in the winning feature.  “They will respond to our direct touch and even change their own shape to better accommodate data, for example, folding up like a piece of paper to be tucked into our pockets,” he says.
The Queen’s Human Media Laboratory segment will be re-broadcast on Discovery Channel at a future date, to be determined. To view the segment online, visit:
http://watch.discoverychannel.ca/daily-planet/may-2009/daily-planet-may-28-2009/#clip177557